Maintaining Friendships for Stress Relief, Happiness and Longevity

Friends add a wonderful dimension to our lives: they help us celebrate
the good times, and they help us make it through the tough times.
Having a strong, supportive social network has been associated with
lower levels of stress, increased longevity, and greater levels of
happiness. Learn more about the value of social support, and find
resources for developing a stronger friendship network, with the
following articles:

How To Create Supportive Relationships:
All social support is not created equal. Here is what you need to know
to create mutually supportive, enduring, truly healthy friendships that
will bring you support, opportunity for personal growth, and stress
management benefits. Find out why it's important to develop listening
skills, your intuition, assertiveness, and other skills that can pay off with increased social support, healthy friendships, and a sense of belonging.

How To Cultivate A Supportive Circle of Friends:
Numerous research studies have shown that supportive friendships can
provide emotional help during stressful times and even improve our
health and increase longevity. Learn the numerous stress management and
health benefits a circle of friends provides, and discover how to begin
expanding your number of supportive friendships.

Assertive Communication:
Assertiveness is a skill that not only helps with marriage and
interpersonal relationships, but can reduce stress and help you attain
more balance at home, at work and in life. Learn more about
assertiveness, aggressiveness and passivity, and see how assertiveness training can improve your life. Read more...